Any references to methods, apparatus or documents of the prior art are not to be taken as constituting any evidence or admission that they formed, or form part of the common general knowledge.
Compositions, and particularly fluid compositions that can be applied over a surface and then hardened (for instance by curing) are known. These compositions are particularly useful to protect a floor.
Flooring materials must withstand the wear and tear of human inhabitants and protect the building structure from damage caused by water, humidity and habitation.
As flooring surface materials may be used over large exposed areas it is important that they contain no environmentally dangerous substances which may either contaminate local environments when in external use, or emit unhealthy gases or dangerous dust particles into internal living spaces. They should also be chemically and physically inert and stable during the entire lifespan of the building.
To meet the contemporary demands of architects and home owners it is preferable that a floor surfacing system be aesthetically beautiful, hardwearing, non-porous, seamless, maintenance free, and capable of enduring changes in both use and climatic conditions for the life of the building without deteriorating. Flooring products should also be capable of formulation with a variety of appearances, allowing design flexibility to meet individual décor requirements of building designers and to achieve a long aesthetic life.
Optimally flooring surfaces should be scratch, slip, stain, abrasion and impact resistant, physically stable and chemically inert.
Historically, cement, concrete, slate, stone, ceramic tiles, plastic products, solid wood and plant based building boards have all been used for this purpose as specific flooring products, Flooring can broadly categorised as modular and non-modular.
Non modular methods used to achieve these criteria in the past include compacted earth, lime, terrazzo, polished concrete, resin based topcoats and 2 part epoxy coatings. All of these surfaces have the advantage of not requiring an adhesive layer to bond to the floor but their major negative attribute is that they all are subject to deterioration without appropriate maintenance and sealing applications.
The consequences of poor maintenance may be a reduced surface gloss with epoxies, or liberation of silica dust from polished concrete or complete failure of compacted earth. Application of these products may also dictate that over time cracks may appear within the surfaces which are not complimentary to the finished product.
Modular methods include ceramic, segmented concrete and natural stone surfaces. These require joints to facilitate expansion and contraction. This requires a skilled approach to laying and necessitates grouting joints between sections and the application of specialised adhesive products or mortars to ensure long life. The functionality of ceramic tiles and natural stone varies greatly with variability of porosity and surface finish dictating the final stain and slip resistance.
It is known to provide resin based topcoats where polymeric resin is mixed with marble and other aggregates to provide a decorative flooring surface which is polished flat, then sealed. These products have limited durability due to the softer aggregates used, limited functionality due to the sealing process ongoing maintenance requirements and easily develop integral cracks in areas of nonstandard dimensions.
It is also known to use polished concrete to achieve a seamless surface allowing for the design of large surface areas without the need for segmented joints. The natural shrinkage of concrete as it cures means that with time concrete develops a network of surface cracks which detract from the unified surface which is initially attractive. Polished concrete is also dependent upon surface sealant products and maintenance procedures which are critical to the ongoing functionality of the surface.
Other disadvantages with existing surface coating compositions is the lack of                porosity/stain resistance,        hardness/scratch resistance,        seamless application,        aesthetic appeal/design diversity,        slip resistance/level of polish,        customisability/individual application,        mechanical/flexural qualities,and the high maintenance of such surfaces.        
Further disadvantages with many existing techniques is that sealing is often needed due to the porous nature of the existing composite material. Standard segmented flooring products such as ceramic tile and natural stone require specialised bonding adhesive and grouts to fill necessary gaps between segments after installation.
Further disadvantages with many existing techniques is that it is not possible to cast in-situ into existing buildings over existing substrates, it is not possible to surface areas seamlessly over different levels and over concrete joints, and it is not possible to cast large areas without batch variations inherent in many manufactured flooring products.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a composition and/or method and/or apparatus which may overcome at least some of the abovementioned disadvantages or provide a useful or commercial choice,